This article reports on the development and long-term evaluation of a marital distress prevention program for German couples, the Ein Partnerschaftliches Lernprogramm (EPL, A Couple's Learning Program).

The EPL is a 6-session program designed to teach couples effective communication and problem-solving skills.

In the current article, the EPL is evaluated in a prospective, quasi-experimental, controlled trial.

The results of the 3-year follow-up are reported, contrasting 55 EPL couples with a control group of 17 couples.